Canadian pubcaster CBC has greenlit six new kids shows—and a stand-out project on the slate is Sinking Ship Entertainment and Eagle Vision’s 2D-animated/live-action preschool series Stevie and the Sacred Animals (pictured).

CBC, APTN, Knowledge Kids and Telus Independent have banded together to greenlight the 52 x 11-minute show, which is rooted in Indigenous storytelling and designed to connect kids with the land. Production starts this spring to hit a 2027 premiere.

Stevie stars a spunky six-year-old Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) girl who moves from the city to her First Nation community. With the help of her family and seven sacred baby animals, Stevie learns about her connection to Mother Earth, with each episode also featuring music from Canadian folk duo Burnstick and a lesson on the Anishinaabemowin language. Characters will be animated against live-action backgrounds.

This is one of Indigenous-owned Eagle Vision’s first kids series, and it wanted to give young viewers a slower-paced concept that helps them connect with nature at a time when technology is increasingly pulling them away from it, says head of content and executive producer Dinae Robinson. The studio previously co-produced the live-action film Capote and a documentary called We Were Children. 

Stevie was created by Eagle Vision founder Lisa Meeches and co-owner Rebecca Gibson. Meeches was inspired to tell the story of her own experience moving back home to a First Nation community so that her young daughter could grow up surrounded by its culture and language. At the same time, Gibson was developing a preschool concept around language-learning. These ideas came together to form the foundation of Stevie.

“Rather than presenting Indigenous life as historical or symbolic, the show revolves around the joyful, everyday moments of a young Indigenous girl growing up in her community, and that experience includes learning, playing and thriving,” says Robinson.

Stevie‘s cute baby animal sidekicks and subtle educational focus on Indigenous language and culture make it a great fit for the CBC, says Marie McCann, senior director of children’s content. She adds that it has strong co-viewing potential and should pair well in the schedule with Molly of Denali, which also spotlights the Indigenous experience.

Funding for the series came from several sources, including the Canada Media Fund, Shaw Rocket Fund and the Indigenous Screen Office. Sinking Ship is distributing Stevie internationally.

On the surface, this doesn’t look like an easy sell, says Sinking Ship co-founder J.J. Johnson (who is also showrunning it with Robinson). “Stevie runs counter to everything the market says it wants for preschool audiences: big brand, toyetic, faster pacing. It’s a show on a mission to reconnect kids with the natural world through wisdom that has been passed down for generations.”

But that ethos actually helps the series stand apart, Johnson says. “At a time when content is increasingly driven by speed, volume and algorithms, and when kids are feeling lonelier than ever, Stevie is a reminder of the importance of taking a breath, slowing things down, and nurturing connections with your family, community and the living world around us.”

More greenlights

Rounding out the new slate at CBC Kids are the following series projects:

Hartford (26 x 11 minutes, Boat Rocker Studios and Industrial Brothers) is about a cautious young bunny who has to learn, with the help of his friends and family, how to overcome anxiety as he goes through everyday life. It’s set for a 2027 release. “We’re excited to help normalize conversations around anxiety for young children and their caregivers,” says Alan Gregg, executive story editor. “The series is, first and foremost, a heartfelt comedy but it also showcases practical strategies for managing those difficult moments when our worries can get the better of us. We’re also thrilled to be working with the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health to ensure that anxiety is portrayed in an authentic, age-appropriate way.”

Olga (52 x 11 minutes, Apartment 11 and Fabrique Fantastique) is a buzzy 2D-animated adaptation of Elise Gravel’s graphic novel series, co-commissioned by TFO. It generated interest at Cartoon Forum and is heading to Kidscreen Summit next week as a competitor in the Kidscreen Licensing Challenge. On track to premiere in 2028, this show for six- to nine-year-olds is about an aspiring zoologist who discovers an alien that helps her come out of her shell.

Little Margo Stories (50 x three minutes, Lightcatcher Media) is a CG-animated series that CBC and Radio-Canada have lined up for summer 2027. This gentle watch revolves around a curious mole who discovers wonderful sights, like the first flower of spring or seeing two animals become friends. The Lightcatcher Media team, including former Nelvana exec Athena Georgaklis, has attracted more than 300,000 subscribers to the preschool IP’s YouTube channel to date. “Little Margo Stories is reflective, non-verbal, intuitive and incredibly entertaining as it mirrors a young preschooler’s reaction to the wonder of the natural world,” says Georgaklis.

Debuting this fall, live-action series Cool Indigenous Stuff (13 x six minutes, Kejic Media) is a fast-paced educational series for six to nines in which two Indigenous kids learn about cool stories, events and people from various Indigenous Nations. They’re joined on their travels to powwows and festivals by animated spirits who help teach simple Ojibwe words and phrases. “We’re seeing strong momentum in Indigenous storytelling across film and television, and bringing that same energy into children’s programming feels both timely and necessary,” says Kejic’s Erica Daniels, an executive producer on the show. “Cool Indigenous Stuff is about making Indigenous culture visible, exciting and accessible for a new generation.”

In renewal news, CBC Kids has ordered a third season of live-action Murdoch Mysteries spinoff Macy Murdoch (eight x 11 minutes, Shaftesbury).

Meanwhile, Radio-Canada (the CBC’s French-language arm) has joined forces with TVOKids, Knowledge Network and TFO to greenlight a 2D-animated series called Globe Bros (20 x 11 minutes) from Epic Storyworlds and Original Content Lab, with additional financing coming from the Shaw Rocket Fund. Aimed at six to nines, this concept focuses on a family’s adventures as they travel around the world. Series creator Heather Greenwood Davis was inspired to create it by her own family’s year-long odyssey to visit 29 countries across six continents. Globe Bros is in pre-production for a Q1 2027 delivery, with Epic’s Loomi Animation producing and Epic Story Media managing global sales.

Image courtesy of Sinking Ship Entertainment.